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Oregon Institute for Creative Research

EIN 47-4837503 · Portland, OR

Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.

LegitimacyPassesRegistration and standingFinancial healthFair50 out of 100GovernanceNot ratedThe short tax form does not cover thisImpact evidenceDescribes programsHow well its results are evidenced

What it says it does

THE OREGON INSTITUTE FOR CREATIVE RESEARCH: E4 IS A NONPROFIT CORPORATION WHOSE PRIMARY PURPOSE IS TO OPERATE A HIGHER LEARNING AND RESEARCH INSTITUTION THAT ADVANCES WORK AT THE INTERSECTION OF ETHICS, STHETICS, ECOLOGY, AND EDUCATION, GIVEN THE FACT THAT THE CHALLENGES OF THE 21ST CENTURY ARE SO GREAT THAT NO SINGLE DOMAIN IN AND OF ITSELF IS CAPABLE OF ADEQUATELY ADDRESSING THEM. TOWARDS THIS END, OICR FOSTERS THINKERS AND MAKERS DEVOTED TO ADDRESSING SOCIAL, PSYCHOLOGICAL, AND ECOLOGICAL PROBLEMS IN NEW AND INNOVATIVE WAYS-SCHOLARS, THEORISTS, RESEARCHERS, JOURNALISTS, DOCUMENTARIANS, SOCIAL-JUSTICE ADVOCATES, ARTISTS, WRITERS, AND POETS. THE INSTITUTE PROVIDES OPPORTUNITIES FOR RESEARCH, EDUCATION, CONFERENCES, ROUNDTABLES, COLLOQUIA, ARTIST RESIDENCIES, PUBLIC OUTREACH, AND SPECIAL PROJECTS.

Income
$99,405
Spending
$70,233
Reserves
2.8 months of spending
Largest source of income
donations and private grants, 100%
Highest pay
$50,424, co-president

Source: Form 990EZ for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Financial health

Fair: 50 out of 100.

  • Reserves

    10 of 35

    Spendable reserves would cover 2.8 months of spending.

  • Debt

    10 of 20

    It owes 40% of what it owns.

  • Living within its means

    15 of 15

    Income exceeded spending by 29% of income.

Source: Form 990EZ for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Governance

This organization files the short tax form, which does not ask about boards, policies or audits. That is normal for a small charity and is not a mark against it.

Source: Form 990EZ for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Impact evidence

Describes programs. Its tax return describes what it does but we have found no measurable results in it.

Programs described in its return (1)
  1. $66,902 spent. THE MAJOR SERVICE PROVIDED BY OICR IS TEACHING. HERE IS A REPRESENTATIVE SEMINAR: IN THE CRITICAL THEORY SEMINAR, STUDENTS ANALYZE NOTIONS OF CRITIQUE IN THE WORK AND LIFE OF MAJOR THINKERS, PAYING PARTICULAR ATTENTION TO THEIR UNDERSTANDING OF THEORY AND PRACTICE, THOUGHT AND ACTION, FORM AND FEELING, MEDIUM AND MESSAGE, MATTER AND MEMORY, TIME AND EXPERIENCE, INTELLIGENCE AND THE SENSES, AESTHETICS AND REPRESENTATION IN RELATION TO TECHNOLOGICAL PROCEDURES, SOCIOLOGICAL CATEGORIZATION, POLITICAL PHENOMENA, AND THE CAPTURE AND CREATION OF LIVED REALITIES. WE BEGIN BY EXPANDING THE MEANING OF CONTEMPORANEITY AND GO ON TO EXAMINE HOW MEANING, INDIVIDUAL AND COLLECTIVE, IS MADE OR, CONVERSELY, UNMADE UNDER VARIOUS CONDITIONS. WE ARE INTERESTED PARTICULARLY IN GENERATING NEW MODES OF CRITIQUE AND JUDGMENT THAT WILL ALLOW US TO EVALUATE ANY NUMBER OF CONTEMPORARY PHENOMENA, INCLUDING THE NOTION OF JUDGMENT ITSELF, THE SUBJECT TO WHICH ARENDT DEVOTED THE LAST YEARS OF HER LIFE AND ABOUT WHICH SHE WAS WRITING AND THINKING SHORTLY BEFORE HER DEATH. STUDENTS CAN EXPECT TO READ AGAMBEN, ARENDT, BACHELARD, BAUDRILLARD, BENJAMIN, BERGSON, FLUSSER, FOUCAULT, LEVINAS, MCLUHAN, MERLEAU-PONTY, RANCIRE, AND SIMMEL.

Source: Form 990EZ for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Legitimacy checks

  1. Is it registered with the IRS? Passed.

    Listed in the IRS master file of tax-exempt organizations as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 2026.

  2. Has the IRS revoked its tax-exempt status? Passed.

    Not on the IRS automatic revocation list.

    Source: Automatic revocation of exemption list, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 30, 2026.

  3. Are donations tax-deductible? Passed.

    On the IRS list of organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions.

    Source: Publication 78 data: organizations eligible for tax-deductible contributions, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 10, 2026.

  4. Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.

    Most recent return on file covers the year ending December 2024.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 2026.

  5. How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.

    Recognized by the IRS since May 2016.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 2026.

  6. Is it in good standing with state regulators? Passed.

    Not on California's list of charities barred from soliciting. Other states are not yet checked.

    Source: May Not Operate or Solicit for Charitable Purposes list, California Attorney General, Registry of Charities and Fundraisers, file dated October 7, 2026.

Ratings and checks are our reading of public records, using the published method. They are not a statement about anyone's honesty. If you work for this organization, you can send corrections or results, confirm you want gifts through Veridonate, or ask to be removed from giving.